


Phone Calls

by rvd



Category: Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Future Fic, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-11
Updated: 2012-12-11
Packaged: 2017-11-20 20:56:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 609
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/589563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rvd/pseuds/rvd
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Oh, hey, Artemis,” Robin says, and yup, that boy needs to stop being so predictable. “It’s Nightwing.” I know, she thinks, and settles in for the long haul. “Is Wally around?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Phone Calls

**Author's Note:**

> This was written around episode 4 and I never actually posted it. Sorry? Basically the idea was that Wally and Dick drifted apart over the five year time skip, each wanting to be friends but without the common ground of being heroes to anchor their friendship. Which, coincidentally, was my personal headcanon until the show threw it out the window.

Artemis is just getting comfortable on the couch for her Buffy the Vampire Slayer marathon, when the phone rings. It’s the landline, which they only have because of how often Wally forgets to _charge his damn phone_ , but it’s Wednesday, so there’s only one person it can be.

She groans, and mutes the show as she reaches for the phone. “Hello?” she says blandly.

“Oh, hey, Artemis,” Robin says, and _yup_ , that boy needs to stop being so predictable. “It’s Nightwing.” _I know,_ she thinks, and settles in for the long haul. “Is Wally around?”

“It’s Wednesday,” Artemis says. Unnecessarily she adds, “He has chem lab until eight.” Hence the Buffy marathon. Wally would pout when he found out she watched it without him, but he sings along with the musical episode and she would really rather not be forced to throw popcorn at him until he stopped.

“Right, sorry, I forgot.” Artemis snorts. Yeah, he _forgot,_ just like he _forgot_ that Wally has football practice from two to five, and he _forgot_ that he and Artemis go to the movies on Saturdays because it’s the only day neither of them have class or are working, and like he _forgot_ the last five times he’s called. And when Wally actually _did_ pick up the phone last week, Artemis almost passed out from the awkward.

Wally hung up not ten minutes later, with the empty look in his eye he gets whenever he and Robin talk. Artemis made him brownies because brownies cure all ills, and let him taste the batter because it made him look less sad. She saw it coming when he stuck his finger in the batter, but let him smear it on her nose. He laughed, more at her expression than anything else, and she laughed too.

Artemis is really getting sick of this.

“So, uh, is he okay? He’s happy with football and everything? Not overworking himself? He does that, you know—of course you know, you’re his girlfri—”

“Robin,” she interrupts firmly. “If you want to know how Wally’s doing, _call Wally_.”

“It’s Nightwing, actually,” he says evasively. She knows, but he’ll always be Robin to her: the thirteen year old boy who knew who her parents were and trusted her anyway.

Plus, calling him Robin annoys him.

“If you don’t want me to call you Robin, you could just tell me your real name,” Artemis says lightly.

“Or you could just call me _Nightwing_ like everyone else does, it’s not actually that hard.” Artemis is neither surprised nor worried when Robin hangs up in a huff, and doesn’t even bother to unmute the television. They have some variation of this argument every couple of months, and she knows he’ll call back.

Sure enough, the phone rings not even a minute later. She lets it ring a few times, to let him stew, and picks it up.

“You didn’t answer my questions,” Robin says without preamble.

Artemis sighs. This is the part of the conversation she hates. She feels like she’s betraying Wally by having these conversations with Robin. She sees how he looks when she tells him Robin called again, call him back will you? Instead of forcing them to talk, she allows them to continue avoiding and ignoring each other.

She wonders how two people can be so _stupid_.

“He’s fine, Robin.” She tells him, no, Wally’s not overworking himself, and _yes_ , he’s eating enough, he’s _Wally_ , and allows them to continue their little game.

She hangs up about twenty minutes before Wally usually comes home, and rewinds back to the beginning of the episode.

She can deal with Wally’s singing tonight.


End file.
